If you're starting to think about what you might want to add to your garden this fall, we have a few ideas for you, including plants with berries for year-round color, plus others that will make your fall beds and containers the envy of the block. You'll also learn about a tiny plant menace and what to do now for blooms come Christmastime! Fall is the perfect time for planting most trees and shrubs. Discover 9 shrubs and trees that bring fall and winter interest, as well as a welcome snack for birds and wildlife when other food sources are scarce. Take your fall containers and beds a step beyond traditional mums. Mums are great fall flowers, but if you add these 10 plants to your shopping list, you'll create combinations that stand out from the rest. Pictured: Lady Godiva® Orange calendula, Bright Lights™ Purple African daisy, and Supertunia® Royal Velvet® petunia. Photos by: Proven Winners. When designers at Oehme, van Sweden & Associates were challenged with the task of renovating a nearly 2-acre lot, one of their main goals was to unify the property. See what they did to make the homeowner say, “Before, I never went into the garden; now I am part of it.” Photo by Jason Dewey. It's no fun dealing with garden pests! Spider mites are one of the most common, but are difficult to spot—they're smaller than the head of pin! In colder regions they overwinter as eggs and hatch in the spring. However, in warmer areas they can be a problem year-round. Learn how to keep these tiny plant predators from causing trouble in your garden. Christmas (Cactus) in September If you're anything like me and get annoyed seeing holiday decorations for sale several months early, please don't be mad at me for mentioning "Christmas cactus" in September. Trust me, there's good reason! Getting Christmas (or Thanksgiving) cactus to rebloom is the number one problem with these winter favorites, and the reason is that it takes some coaxing. Learn what you need to start doing in the next couple of weeks to get your Christmas cactus to bloom again. Bonus: Is the plant pictured here a true Christmas cactus or a close cousin? You'll know exactly how to tell them apart after you check out the info in our new article. What should you be doing in your garden in September? Check out our regional gardening guides to find out: With so much of the West Coast on fire, I wanted to share the Fire Recovery Guide from the California Native Plant Society. It contains information on post-fire land care, erosion control, how to help fire-damaged trees recover, as well as how to prepare and protect your property with defensible space. It's a helpful resource if you live in any area that is (or could possibly be) affected by wildfires. If you know someone who could use some fall plant ideas or benefit from the wildfire resources, or if you simply enjoyed this newsletter, please share it by clicking here! In Case You Missed It: Not currently receiving this weekly newsletter? Subscribe here! No images? Click here for a web version of this email. |